Reddick climbs fence to make amazing catch

By Jane Lee / MLB.com

TORONTO -- It's confirmed.

"Yes, I am part Spiderman," Josh Reddick told reporters as they approached him late Wednesday night.

The speculation about it began just hours earlier, when the A's outfielder entered superhero mode in the second inning of an eventual 16-0 Oakland win in Toronto, scaling the fence in right field, holding onto it with his right hand and making the grab of Travis Snider's near-homer with his left.

"Freakin' awesome," Jonny Gomes concluded. "You're winning ballgames and you're having fun, but it just seems like something like that happens every night to where it's keeping everyone in here loose. It's just a tribute to playing the game right and playing the game hard. How many guys are going to play that off the wall?"

Not Reddick, who attempted the play in the same spot unsuccessfully last season while with the Red Sox. No wonder it seemed rehearsed.

"That's what it seemed like," said reliever Jerry Blevins, who was watching from the opposite side of the fence as the scene unfolded. "I told him the wall was right there, but he didn't need my assistance. He was aware, knew what was going on and where he was."

"Yeah, I knew where I was on the field, saw the fenced area behind me, and that's where the ball was projecting to go," Reddick said. "I felt like it had a chance to get out, but I jumped early to kind of get a heads up, and I heard Blevins back there the whole way, supporting me and telling me I got it. It all happened so fast. You just go with it and it works out.

"I wasn't trying to get cool points. I was just trying to make the catch."

Turns out he succeeded in both.

"I've seen it on TV," Blevins said. "I know a couple of the Japanese guys have climbed up and robbed homers like that, but I've never seen it in person. Pretty exciting stuff."

"Pretty acrobatic," manager Bob Melvin added.

Jane Lee is a reporter for MLB.com. Read her blog, Major Lee-ague, and follow her on Twitter @JaneMLB. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.